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Valuing diversity: guidance for labour market integration of migrants

education. This might make it difficult to provide access to guidance and to
provide an adjusted and integrated response. Coordination between public
authorities in contact with immigrants becomes important to provide coherent
programmes adjusted to individual and group needs. The involvement of local
authorities may prove of great value, since they are frequently closer to
immigrant communities and more in touch with their issues.
Cooperation between public services and migrant/cultural associations and
immigrant community representatives can be important in ensuring access to
guidance and its adjustment to the group needs and characteristics (outreach).
One critical issue to be discussed is how the relevant agents in the immigrant
communities can acquire necessary guidance skills and how to ensure the
sustainability of activities that are often project-based.
The results of Cedefop's (2011f) peer learning event on labour market
integration of migrants in Europe suggests that it is important to develop the
different levels of migrant-targeted guidance provision. Greater engagement of
social partners is seen as key to the success of these activities, with of employer
and worker representatives having an important role in addressing the challenge
of immigrant integration and combatting all forms of discrimination at the
workplace. The event also suggested that the involvement of the migrant
community in the design, development and delivery of activities is also
fundamental. This involvement can be achieved through mediation, developing
the organising capacity of role model building. The effectiveness of guidance is
greatly increased by higher responsiveness and adaptation to migrant
communities and their cultures.
The quality of services is also dependent on the skills and characteristics of
practitioners. Cross-cultural competences are required for practically every
activity mentioned above, potentially with several levels of complexity according
to the degree of personal and cultural involvement of each activity. Practitioners
must have access to training that allows them to use them the methods put into
practice flexibly and develop knowledge and perceptions of immigrant value
systems. Interesting examples of methods and guidelines to train practitioners in
multicultural counselling can be found in the improved future project handbook
European guidance approach to facilitate immigrants’ entry into the labour market
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(Education and Culture DG, 2008) ( ), also in advising third-country nationals
(National Institute of Adult Continuing Education, 2010).

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( ) http://www.adam-europe.eu/adam/project/view.htm?prj=4775#.UrBz6crDtI0
[accessed 18.3.2014].

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